With Geno Smith expected to be sidelined for a week or longer, the Seahawks added depth at quarterback Saturday, signing former Ohio State starter J.T. Barrett. The Seahawks also added linebacker Juwon Young, an undrafted rookie out of Marshall.
Linebacker Chris Worley and safety Marwin Evans were waived to make room on the 90-man roster.
Smith and Paxton Lynch have been competing for Seattle's backup job, but Smith is having a cyst removed from his knee, and Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said the veteran will be out for 7-10 days, putting his availability for Seattle's second preseason game in question. With that in mind, the Seahawks added Barrett, who signed with New Orleans as an undrafted free agent last year, spending most of the season on the Saints' practice squad. Barrett was waived by the Saints earlier this month.
Barrett started 44 games over four seasons with the Buckeyes, including all 27 games over his final two seasons. As a senior he completed 64.7 percent of his passes, throwing for 3,053 yards, 35 touchdowns and nine interceptions. Barrett also rushed for 798 yards and 12 touchdowns as a senior.
Young, who played at the University of Miami before transferring to Marshall, signed with Detroit in May, then was waived the following month. Young also took part in Seattle's 2019 rookie minicamp as a tryout player.
Evans, who previously played for Green Bay, was signed to Seattle's practice squad late last season, then later signed to a reserve/future contract following the end of the season. Worley, who went undrafted out of Ohio State in 2018 and spent his rookie season with the Bengals, signed with Seattle this past Tuesday.
